New Beginnings
by Mystical-Magickal-Wytch
Summary: The move of a lifetime... one summer's day... a chance accident... and so it all started...
1. Chapter 1

**Okay... I can't actually remember when I started this but it's sort of an idea that has been playing around in my mind for ages and has been gathering dust on my computer drive. It's only now that I've finally got round to posting this up.**

**I apologise in advance for the French (I've reduced it as much as I can and it'll only make rare appearances I promise.... I'm doing AS so just typing **_**' "blah blah blah" she said in French' **_**was impossible for me!!!), I apologise if my character seems a total sue as well because for some reason they turn out like that... hopefully she'll be easier to stand than some of my other characters when my writing level was diabolical. I also apologise if the writing still isn't good... I haven't been an active FF member for a while so here goes... :P**

**Cedric is alive because I say so... end of story and I know my 'explanation' is weak... i just needed the combination of Umbridge and Cedric for this and hey... this is FF so anything is possible!!!!!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything that any of you recognise from the Harry Potter series... I can't even dream of replicating the genius that is JKR. I only own my characters (basically the things you won't recognise). **

**Special Thanks to: PunkChopsticks and Paula545 without whom this probably wouldn't have made it on here... also to the RRA in general – the maddest but most amazing group of people ever to grace the diverse world of the internet... Love you all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Here goes nothing...**

The late afternoon sun burned down on the already parched grass by the River Otter. There was the odd laugh hanging on the warm, summer air from nearby but the village was too far away to be heard. It must have been some guys out somewhere... muggles probably.

Hannah walked in the parched, brittle grass along the river. Her dark brown hair hung in loose curls down her back and around her shoulders, shaping around her head. Her blue tartan check shirt was left open under which she wore a white vest top. She contemplated the very tired state of her faded blue jeans, ripped in places sporting the odd grass stain here and there. Her white flat shoes were already becoming marked with dirt from the dry, powdery soil. Rays of sun shone in her hazel eyes so she shielded them as best she could with her hand as she walked; finally getting a feel for the area she now called home.

She came across the source of the laughter: a group of three boys about the same age as her were walking out of the woods nearby, laughing together on some private joke. Hannah regarded them briefly and looked back to where she was going. She could not see them properly to make out their features clearly, but one had dark hair and was dressed in a white t-shirt and jeans, another was blonde and was dressed in a blue top and black trousers (insane in the current temperature, or so Hannah thought) and the last had light brown hair and wore a grey t-shirt and jeans. Hannah didn't really take much notice of them as she started to make her way across a rather old wooden bridge – more a set of planks fastened together as a platform put across the water. It didn't feel very safe but it was the first 'bridge' she'd seen for miles, other than those much closer to the village.

The platform rocked slightly as Hannah stepped across it and there even were a few slight cracking noises in the old wood as she stepped across but nothing to make her worried. She just thought she could get across as quickly and steadily as possible until…

Hannah screamed loudly as the timbers gave way beneath her and she fell into the deep and surprisingly icy water. She was dazed and was also coughing violently, having swallowed a large amount of the river water as she fell. There was a flash in her mind as she felt a pair of strong arms grab her and help her get to the surface quicker. Hannah took a huge gasp of air when she reached the surface and turned to see who her rescuer was. It was the boy wearing the grey T-shirt. Now she saw him properly… he had chiselled features and cool, dark grey eyes.

"Are you alright?" he asked, slightly out of breath – they were both paddling to keep afloat. Hannah nodded, managing not to cough for about a second. He took her arm and they swam to the bank, getting out of the water as quickly as they could. Hannah was still coughing the water out of her lungs and lay on her back, catching her breath. The two other boys Hannah had seen earlier rushed forward to see if their friend was alright.

"Look, I'm fine… just… you two go home ok? I'm alright!" he urged, pushing them away. They looked uncertain and then decided to turn back to Ottery St Catchpole. Hannah's rescuer was sat upright and now turned to her, offering her his hand to help her up.

"Cedric Diggory" he introduced himself with a friendly smile.

"Hannah Brunel" she replied, somewhat enchanted by him. They both stood.

"You were lucky… they've been saying they'll get rid of that thing for months" he commented.

"I guess they'll have to now" Hannah mused, smiling. There was a brief pause. "Thank you for… helping me out" she said.

"No problem" he replied. There was another pause.

"I … er… should probably go home and dry off" Hannah commented.

"Yeah… me too." He replied. They started to walk back, in a sort of friendly but awkward silence. The sun was setting, it was nearly dusk.

"So… you've just moved here" he remarked.

"Yes… about two weeks ago" Hannah answered.

"Where from?"

"France… my dad works in the minist- in politics… a sort of ambassador. My mum worked in the same circle in Paris" she replied, nearly slipping up by revealing the existence of the ministry of magic. If someone from the wizarding world talked to another witch or wizard about 'the ministry', it was obvious what it meant but an ordinary muggle couldn't possibly find out.

"So… a pretty big move then"

"Yeah, you could say that…" Hannah mused, thinking of all the changes: home, school, country, language and many others. There was another pause. They were closer to the town now and could see the houses clustered around the river.

"Whereabouts do you live?" Cedric asked.

"Just south of the village" Hannah replied, most wizard residences were outside the town rather than in it. There was yet another pause.

"So… how come you moved here?" he asked finally.

"They recalled my dad, said something very serious had happened and they wanted him to come back to England. We came back with him" Hannah said, although she had now recognised the area and the route to her house.

"I'll leave you here… my house is just down that path" Hannah told her rescuer.

"Ok… I hope I'll see you around some time." He replied.

"I hope so" she agreed. They smiled. "See you," she told him finally as she started to head home.

"See you, bye" he replied waving.

It was nearly the start of the new school term. Hannah had been taken to Diagon Alley by her parents to do her school shopping. They had stopped in at Flourish and Blotts to buy her textbooks for the year but she was less than impressed by her Defence Against the Dark Arts text book.

"Dad, which nut have they got teaching defensive magic?" Hannah asked her dad, Michael.

"Hannah!" her French mother, Isabelle, said disapprovingly to her. In Beauxbatons they had a strict code of behaviour and respect towards their teachers. Isabelle wanted Hannah to uphold this.

"C'est vrai, Maman!" Hannah retorted. "There's nothing here about using defensive spells… it's all theory! What use is that?"

"I'm sure you'll have better resources at school, Hannah," her dad told her. Hannah handed him the book and walked over to a shelf near the door with books on Charms – one of her favourite subjects. The door flew open, accompanied by a blast of cold air, as two people stepped into the shop: father and son.

"Dad, it was just a Quidditch match" the younger man was saying to his excited father in a voice that seemed familiar.

"But you beat Harry Potter! That'll be something to tell your grandchildren, eh Ced?" the boy's dad replied. Hannah turned round, recognising the nickname as that of the friend she had made in the holidays after falling through a bridge into a river. She and Cedric looked quizzically at each other as their fathers started talking.

"What are you doing here?" Hannah asked, completely bemused.

"I was about to ask you the same thing" he laughed.

"But… I thought… God this is so embarrassing, I thought you were a muggle!" Hannah told him, laughing.

"I thought you were" he replied. They both laughed.

"So… you go to Hogwarts, then?" she asked.

"Yes… and I'm guessing you moved from Beauxbatons" he deduced. She nodded, laughing.

"I know what you're thinking… that I'll start complaining about it like Fleur did last year"

"You were here last year?" he asked.

"Naturellement! I was practically the school interpreter" Hannah laughed, remembering it. "Mon Dieu! You were the Hogwarts Champion" she suddenly realised… lapsing into French.

"Yeah… one of them, anyway" he said sheepishly. "I was lucky I got knocked out and left, if you think about it… with what happened and all" he added on a darker note.

"Very Lucky" Hannah replied, remembering the shadowed days of the tournament last year. There was an awkward silence between the pair. "I can't believe I didn't recognise you!"

"You were kind of coughing up river water at the time" Ced replied, giving her an excuse. She laughed. "You're still supporting your old school then" he commented after a pause, noticing that she was wearing a Beauxbatons hooded jacket.

"What? Oh!" Hannah laughed. "We had them made for Quidditch… me and the rest of my house team"

"You play Quidditch? What position do you play?" Cedric asked, curious.

"Erm… Poursuiveuse… I don't know what that would be in English… a Pursuer?" Hannah suggested. She didn't really follow English Quidditch so it was hard for her to translate the positions.

"A Chaser" Ced clarified. "Cool, I play seeker… I'm captain of my House Quidditch Team"

"A seeker?" Hannah queried, not having a clue which position that would be when it was translated into French.

"You know… they catch the Golden Snitch" Ced explained.

"The Golden snitch? Oh… le Vif d'Or!" Hannah realised. "Ok, I know what you mean now… sorry"

"I never knew Quidditch could be so complicated" he teased.

"It's not! I just need to re-learn the terminology… that's all" Hannah retorted, defensively. "Anyway… I don't understand the appeal of Seeker, you don't do anything" she added with a teasing and triumphant smile.

"Well… you kind of need us to end the game" he argued.

"But all you do is sit around and wait, maybe fly here and there until you see the … what was it? The Snitch? At least as a chaser you get to have a bigger part in the action" Hannah carried on, deliberately winding him up.

"So… where have you got this evidence to back up this opinion of yours? An Ex-boyfriend or something that played seeker?" Ced asked, also trying to wind Hannah up.

Hannah pretended to look shocked.

"If this wasn't a shop and my parents weren't over there I would have hit you" she said, although not seriously. "Anyway… I subbed for seeker once… most boring experience of my life"

"You lost?"

"No, we won. I wasn't that bad… I just missed being a chaser" she replied. Ced laughed.

"So why did you offer to sub for a seeker then?"

"Because I wanted to see what it was like, playing the position that apparently everyone wants" Hannah replied. Ced just stood there smiling at her. "Anyway, I'm going to leave before I slap you" Hannah told him jokingly with a wink as she left to join her parents. Ced laughed as she walked off. This wasn't the first 'argument' they had had together. During the holidays, as they got to know each other, they constantly tried to tease each other, mainly because Hannah was a very teasing kind of person. Cedric seemed much more honourable… more modest – generally a better person than Hannah but perhaps it was the fact the opposites attracted that they had become such good friends in a short space of time…

They caught up with each other in the Leaky Cauldron, along with thousands of students from Hogwarts.

"You're not still mad at me… are you?" Ced jokingly as they sat talking at a table over a bottle of butterbeer.

"No… I was joking earlier… I wouldn't have hit you" Hannah replied.

"Good"

"Only really important people are special enough for that" Hannah teased, her mouth widening into a smile. Ced laughed but didn't argue back. "Seeker's not so bad… I guess" she finally conceded after an awkward pause. "It's just… not for me"

"So that row in Flourish & Blotts was just a show?" Ced challenged with a smile.

"No… well, kind of" Hannah admitted rather sheepishly. "I wanted to see if I could get a reaction from you"

"So… you're sure it's not an ex-boyfriend?" Ced asked, deliberately teasing. Hannah reached across to try and thump him and accidentally knocked the butterbeer all over him. Ced looked shocked and Hannah would have apologised but she had fallen back in her seat, laughing so hard.

"This your new girlfriend Cedric?" one of two identical boys with red hair asked. They both had an amused look on their faces.

"Girlfriend? She just knocked butterbeer all over me!" Ced replied, smiling but still in slight shock over what had happened.

"It was an accident!" Hannah pleaded, still laughing. Ced got up and started to make his way around the table to her. Hannah backed away, trying to get out of the corner seat they had sat in. "No, come on, Ced… Please!" she started to plead, still laughing. "No!" she then said firmly when he picked up her butterbeer. The redheaded twins watched with grins on their faces as Ced advanced on Hannah. Hannah was pleading with him to put the glass down, holding his arms back from her and having some success in persuading him to put the glass down until… someone knocked into Cedric's back, causing him to lunge forward, tipping the butterbeer over Hannah.

Hannah was not impressed… her mouth and eyes were wide with shock. Now, it was Ced who couldn't apologise for laughing.

"Oh... you didn't!" she exclaimed in mock anger.

"It was an accident" he, now, pleaded.

"Same when I did it!" Hannah argued.

"Just call a truce, you two!" one of the twins said as they walked over… their grin ever widening.

"Who are you?" Hannah asked.

"I'm Fred"

"And I'm George"

"They're lying… it's the other way round" Ced told Hannah.

"How do you know Diggory?" the one that had said he was George demanded.

"Because we all live around Ottery St Catchpole and you're in my year" Ced replied as if it was obvious. There was a pause.

"Ok… so we lied about that" the one that had said he was Fred (and therefore was George) admitted.

"And who might you be?" Fred (the actual Fred) asked. Hannah was about to open her mouth when…

"Hannah! Viens-ici!" the angry voice of Hannah's mother rang out. Hannah rolled her eyes.

"Pleasure to meet you Hannah" George replied, still grinning.

"And you" Hannah replied.

"So, you're French?" Fred asked.

"Half French, yeah. My dad's English… listen, I'd love to stay and chat, really, but I'd better go to my mum… she gets really angry really quickly" Hannah explained. "Anyway, I've got to go and explain _this_ to my parents" she finished, looking pointedly at Ced who was smiling casually.

"See you later!" the twins called as she left. She turned and said the same thing before carrying on.


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay... so here's round two. Sorry if it's odd or ends short but I thought that after the ending line I couldn't really carry it on... it just seemed right to end it there. **

**Special thanks to Paula, Lady Clark and PunkChopsticks. Your reviews were so lovely and really helped me get confident about writing again!!!**

**After this there should be much less French I promise!**

**Disclaimer: Once again I don't own anything you recognise from the HP series... just the things you won't recognise :P**

**Here we go...**

Hannah clapped her hands over her ears as the piercing sound of the horn on the Hogwarts Express sounded over the sound of mingled conversations. She had come with her parents and the Diggorys. Hannah's dad smiled at the action which both she and her mother had done simultaneously. The two Beauxbatons alumni obviously disapproved of the method of transport Hogwarts students had to take. The two of them looked around with a particularly 'Beauxbatons' expression on their faces – as if everything about Hogwarts was awful compared to the wonder that was the French Academy.

Hannah caught Cedric's amused eye as the two families briefly rejoined each other.

"You go to school on a train?" Hannah asked, sarcastically.

"Yeah… why? Is it not up to the standard of your school's carriage and horses?" he asked mockingly, although in a friendly way, as he and his parents separated from the Brunels again. Hannah and her mum flinched again as the horn sounded.

"Right, you'd better get on board" her dad told her, leading them all towards the doors of one of the carriages.

"Tu m'écriras?" Hannah's mum asked, almost frantically after her husband had helped get Hannah's luggage on the train.

"Oui, je te promets" Hannah assured her.

"A bientôt!" her mother replied, hugging Hannah tightly before letting her say her goodbyes to her dad.

"So… this is it, Hannah" her dad said.

"Yep,"

"Nervous?"

"Mmmn… not really. I've been to a much better boarding school for six years" she replied with a smile. The Beauxbatons Vs Hogwarts thing was a family joke seeing as the whole of Hannah's mum's family had gone and still went to Beauxbatons and the whole of her dad's family had gone and still went to Hogwarts. Her dad simply smiled back at her.

"Look, try not to be… too pessimistic about my old School. I already know how wonderful Beauxbatons is and I'm sure the students at Hogwarts do as well after you lot went there last year" her dad told her.

"Yes Dad" Hannah laughed, remembering the unmatchable performance on this subject by Fleur Delacour. The Horn sounded again. Hannah hugged her dad goodbye and got onto the train, followed closely by Ced. He had been charged with the task of looking after her for the first few days, Hannah later found out.

She joined the crowds of children leaning out of the windows, waving goodbye as the doors closed and the train started to chug slowly out of the platform…

"I've got to go and help the first-years settle in" Ced explained. "So… I'll try to get someone for you to go with until I come back"

"Ok" Hannah replied, not really knowing what to expect.

"Cho? Cho!" he called to a Chinese girl with a kind face and dark almond eyes. Hannah followed Ced over to her.

"Hey" she said with a Scottish accent.

"Hi, could I leave Hannah with you? I've got to go and deal with the first-years. You know how it is" Ced explained, joking slightly.

"Yeah… sure" she replied cheerily, smiling at Hannah.

"Ok, cool. I'll…um… see you later" Ced told her, starting to move off. "Thanks Cho"

Cho took Hannah to a compartment where there were two other girls her age – Cho's friends.

"They made you come here for your last year?" one girl, Marietta Edgecombe, exclaimed suddenly.

"Yeah… does seem a bit pointless" another, Sarah Ross, remarked. Hannah shrugged.

"I'm kind of used to the idea. I mean, I can't really do anything to help it despite being 17" she replied. "So… you're all in your sixth year?"

"Yeah" the three of them chorused.

"That means you've just done you're OWL's" Hannah guessed… the system here was different to Beauxbatons.

"Yeah, we have" Cho answered with the two others agreeing with her. Hannah smiled, almost conspiratorially.

"How'd you do?"

"I did good… I managed to get a couple O's and then I got E's and one A" Cho replied, looking pleased.

"E's across the board" Marietta Edgecombe replied.

"I got four O's and six E's" Sarah replied, rather timidly, flicking some blonde hair out of her brown eyes.

"What about you?" Cho asked.

"We did BUSE – Brevet Universel de Sorcellerie Élémentaire. But we do it a year after you" Hannah replied. "We do ASPIC after for one year."

"How did you do?" Sarah asked.

"I got seven O's and three E's" Hannah replied, to receive shocked faces. "We do tend to be more studious than you lot at Beauxbatons"

The other three laughed slightly.

"So… how do you know Ced Diggory?" Marietta asked conspiratorially.

"Um… it's kind of embarrassing actually. I fell through a makeshift, rotten wood bridge into the River Otter." Hannah answered.

"So he jumped in and pulled you out?" Sarah asked excitedly.

"Yeah… well kind of, I mean, I can swim and everything, but I swallowed loads of water and was kind of coughing." Hannah explained. Cho seemed a little uncomfortable. "Did they… er… go out or something?"

"Yeah, last year… they broke up after everything that happened last year though… with the tournament." Marietta replied. "It's still kind of awkward"

"God… that was really mean of him to ask her to look after me… I mean… he has no idea has he?" Hannah said, acting shocked. It was almost as if she had put them, especially Cho, in an awkward situation.

"It doesn't matter" Cho said in a quiet voice. "I'm over him anyway"

But Hannah could tell there were still some feelings Cho had for Ced. The compartment door slid open

"Speak of the devil" Sarah muttered when they saw Ced in the doorway.

"Done helping the firsties settle in?" Hannah enquired with a teasing smile.

"Yes. Anyway… if you want… I thought you'd want to meet some people in our year" he offered. "I mean… you don't have to"

"No… I'd love to… that is… No offence to you three" she began, turning to the girls. "You've been amazing but…"

"It's alright" Cho said with a smile. "We'll see you later. With the grades that you got, you'll probably be in our house anyway" she answered with a smile.

"I hope so… wouldn't want to be in Hufflepuff or anything" Hannah said, as a deliberate gibe at Ced. She said goodbye and closed the compartment door before following Ced slowly down the train.

"What's wrong with Hufflepuff?" he asked, slightly angrily.

"Nothing!" she replied, sincerely. He didn't look convinced. "I was only winding you up… although I probably do it too often… I'm sorry"

Hannah didn't realise quite how carried away she had got with this whole joke of winding Ced up about Hogwarts and his house… she needed to grow up.

There was a brief silence.

"It's ok. I guess growing up with the anti-English mentality doesn't really help much"

Hannah laughed.

"Yeah… my mum and I tend to gang up on poor dad. I think he's hoping I'll start to take his side"

They walked along the corridor until Ced came to a slightly loud compartment. He slid the door open to the group inside.

"Brought the new girl, Ced?" one guy asked. Hannah had been standing out of the way so she hadn't seen what the group looked like.

"Yeah…" he said and then looked at Hannah, prompting her to come forward.

"Hi" Hannah said to the group, timidly. There were three girls and three guys. The girls all had long-ish hair. One had straight golden blonde hair which came just below her shoulder blades and green eyes. Another had chestnut brown hair which came down to her waist in slight waves and amber eyes. The last girl had dark hair, similar to Hannah's which was shoulder-length but framed her face – she had dark blue eyes. The guys seemed pretty clean-cut. One had neat, short, blonde hair and blue eyes; another, brown hair, again neat-cut, which came to just above his ears at its longest. He had brown eyes. The last had dark blonde, slightly untidy, long-ish hair… kind of "skater"-ish if that made sense. He had green eyes.

"Hi!" the girls chorused excitedly. The guys were staring with their mouths open.

"Hello? It's common practice to say hi to someone when they say hi to you" the girl with dark hair told the boys. They came to their senses suddenly with murmurs of "oh" and then a slightly out-of-sync chorus of "Hi" to Hannah.

"Everyone… this is Hannah" Ced told them. Hannah received another chorus of "Hi Hannah".

"I'm Kate, this is Amy and this is Hayley" the blonde girl told Hannah, pointing to the brunette and then the dark-haired girl in turn.

"Hi" Hannah said to them.

"I'm James and this is Ed" the blonde boy said, then pointing to the other blonde boy with the skater hair.

"And you?" Hannah asked the boy with brown hair.

"Je m'appelle Zac" the boy replied in perfect French.

"Ah… tu parle français?" Hannah asked, pleasantly surprised.

"Mon Père est Français… donc, je peux parler les deux, comme toi" he replied. The other six were at a loss as to what was being said but Hannah and Zac smiled.

"Come sit down, both of you!" Kate told Hannah and Ced enthusiastically. Hayley motioned for Hannah to sit next to her and near Zac. Ced took a seat opposite Hannah – next to the window.

"So, what brings you to Hogwarts then?" James asked.

"My dad worked as a sort of ambassador for the ministry but Fudge recalled him at the end of last year" Hannah explained casually.

"So you have to come here for one year?" Kate asked to clarify.

"Yeah" I said pessimistically. "But I'll try not to be too negative... I'll bet you guys had enough of that last year"

The group laughed.

"Does seem a bit pointless though... to come for your final year – you've missed a year of NEWTs anyway" Hayley commented.

"That's what everyone I've told has said – why doesn't the ministry listen to you guys?" Hannah asked jokingly.

"What did you get in your Exams last year?" Zac asked. Hannah relayed the grades to a series of stunned faces whose expressions quickly turned to disappointment.

"What's wrong?"

"Doubt we'll see much of you... we're mostly Hufflepuffs here" Kate lamented.

"Mostly?"

"Ed and Hayley are Gryffindors" Zac explained.

"So..." Hannah prompted, still confused.

"Well... it looks like you'll be in Ravenclaw" Amy told her. Hannah laughed.

"That's the second time I've been told that... anyway... it's not bad is it? We'll still all see each other if I'm not in your house, right?" Hannah asked, not wanting to lose the first friends of her year in the space of five minutes.

"Oh... Definitely" James replied, slightly over the top with a wide grin on his face. The other boys burst out laughing whilst the girls shook their heads in mock disapproval.

"I wonder how they'll sort you" Hayley mused.

"Yeah... doesn't it involve a worn-out hat or something?" Hannah asked, curiously although she had slight misgivings about yet another of Hogwarts' odd little quirks.

"Yeah but you get sorted in first year, normally"

"Oh God! I really hope they don't make me go up with all the small first-years... I'll look like a giraffe!" Hannah complained. The group laughed.

"At least you'll be an attractive giraffe" Ed teased. Hannah laughed.

"_As if_" this was her natural reaction to compliments.

Dressed in neat, dull, grey school uniform with next to no insignia... unlike her friends... Hannah joined the throng making their way off the train.

"What happens now?" she asked Ced, looking around at the small platform at 'Hogsmeade' barely lit by the odd lamp.

"Well, the first-years follow Hagrid to the boats and are taken to the castle... the rest of us go to the carriages... over here" he said, surprising her by taking her hand to lead her to the carriages. There was a tall, almost feline looking middle-aged woman standing at the front of the queue for the carriages. She was clad in dark robes with a pointed hat and had a keen expression on her face.

"That's odd" Ced commented.

"Hey, Ced... what's the McGonagall doing here?" Zac asked as the others quickly caught up with us. Ced shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't understand..." Hannah began. The tall woman made her way straight towards them.

"Good Evening" her shrill voice greeted with a crisp Scottish accent. Her eyes fell directly upon Hannah. "Miss Brunel"

"Oui – er I mean... yes" Hannah replied, briefly lapsing into Beauxbatons mode.

"Come along with me, I'll ensure that you get sorted and settled quickly in your house" she told her, with hardly any emotion. It was almost intimidating although Hannah sensed this was just because she was in 'strict teacher' mode. Hannah looked back uncertainly at Ced as he let go of her hand and McGonagall began to lead her off.

"I would suggest that the rest of you hurry into your carriages and get to the castle immediately" she ordered the gaping students, staring in confusion at McGonagall's early appearance.

It was exactly as Hannah had feared... she was put in with the first years so she had yet more people staring at her in complete bewilderment... wondering why someone who was clearly not a first year was being sorted. Luckily, however, the list of names ran in alphabetical order. This was the one time Hannah thanked her dad's family that their surname began with the second letter in the alphabet.

The Hat (even more worn out than she had imagined it would be) was brought out as if it was a prized and honoured relic of the school, and held up before the first-years and the already sorted students of the school, seated with their house. Hannah waited, wondering why there was a sense of anticipation in the room. The ripped brim of the hat opened, surprising Hannah briefly, and shocking the first-years. The hat began to recite a long song before the ceremony began. Hannah glanced around at the faces at the tables, all of which seemed surprised and confused by the lyrics. The song not only seemed to describe the qualities and history of the houses but it seemed to call for unity between them... like it was warning against something. At the final line 'Let the Sorting now begin', McGonagall stepped forward and read the first name on the list to the anticipating crowd in the hall and the petrified huddle of first-years.

"Abercrombie, Euan."

"Gryffindor!"

The terrified first year with rather noticeable ears stepped down from the seat to be greeted by an eruption of applause from a largely red and gold table. Hannah was growing steadily self-conscious, standing at the front of the hall, pretty near towering over the poor kids around her.

"Brunel, Hannah" McGonagall called loudly. Hannah stepped up slowly and sat down upon the stool at the front of the hall. Many of the first years were almost glad that it was finally her turn... at least they were on a more equal playing field now.

"Hmmmmn... let's see now" the sorting hat began its long monologue. _Just sort me and get it over with!_ she thought in her head. It chuckled immediately. "A good mind..." it went on after a previous half-hour's worth... at least it seemed that long under the intense embarrassment.

"Ravenclaw!" it boomed. The blue table erupted into cheers and the three others looked slightly disappointed. Hannah walked through the hall and took a seat next to Cho who was sat with Marietta and Sarah. They congratulated her along with the rest of the house and the hall settled as they all watched the rest of the sorting continue normally. She caught Ced's eye as they cheered and mimed a quick 'sorry' to him that she hadn't made Hufflepuff. He smiled and mimed 'congratulations'.

The line of first years began to thin and Hannah dutifully cheered along with everyone else on her table when they gained new additions to Ravenclaw house.

The Hall was gradually silenced. Hannah watched as Hogwarts' legendary headmaster rose to his feet. She had seen many pictures of Dumbledore and had heard lots about him but to make a judgement of character, you had to see the real thing. His beard was very long – an almost stereotypical wizard's beard. His half-moon spectacles were perched on a ridge in his nose, one like someone would get if they had broken their nose. His face was warm, kindly and welcoming... almost like he was a sort of grandfatherly Santa Clause-type figure for the school. His voice added to the impression of him Hannah had received. His arms were outstretched as if he was about to give all of us a welcoming embrace and he was beaming a wide smile to us all.

"To our newcomers" he boomed, "welcome! To our old hands – welcome back! There is a time for speech-making, but this is not it. Tuck in!" he invited us as a sumptuous feast materialised upon the five tables which near groaned under the weight of the food.

There was a loud and enthusiastic ripple of applause and appreciative laughter as the students began to serve themselves with helpings that were perhaps too much for them.

"Welcome to Ravenclaw" a guy with dark hair and eyes and a sporty but studious air about him told Hannah with a wide grin. Hannah recognised him vaguely but she couldn't put her finger on what it was.

"Thank you" she replied, smiling.

"I'm Roger Davies... Quidditch Captain" he introduced proudly, shaking Hannah's hand. _That's where I recognised him!_ Hannah thought, although she was slightly unnerved by the sudden and enthusiastic introduction.

"You went with Fleur to the Ball last year" Hannah stated, a slightly nervous smile playing on her lips.

"Yes" he admitted sheepishly.

"Nice to meet you, Roger" Hannah replied, remembering the correct response. Roger seemed satisfied.

"So... what brings you to Hogwarts at this late stage?" he asked.

"My dad worked as an ambassador in Paris but Fudge recalled him at the end of last year and the rest of us with him." She replied, wondering how many times she would have to explain her presence to other students.

"Oh... but with only one year left of school doesn't that seem a bit..."

"Pointless?" Hannah cut in, the predictability of the conversation boring her. "Yeah, I know but Fudge would have none of it"

That seemed to silence Roger for a little.

"Do you play Quidditch?"

"Yeah! I used to be.... wait, what was it? ... A Chaser?"

"Chaser? That's my position too!" Roger realised enthusiastically. "We'll be doing tryouts shortly... you should come along... we're always happy to have new players!"

"Thanks... I'll bear that in mind" Hannah told him, smiling politely.

The noise level was starting to rise now that most, if not all of the students had finished eating.

Dumbledore rose once more to commence his start-of-term fest. He started off outlining 'usual start-of-term notices' such as the forest being out of bounds and so on... Hannah remembered that from last year. He then went on to tell the students about staffing changes and the students listened attentively... if not adoringly to their headmaster.

_So that's the theory-obsessed person teaching us defensive magic._ Hannah thought when she spied the pink-clad toad-like woman sitting triumphantly at the grand table.

"Tryouts for the house Quidditch teams will take place on the –" Dumbledore broke off as the marshmallow in pink made a small, simpering cough '_hem, hem_' and stood. Shock and confusion rippled through the hall. Hannah hadn't been here more than half an hour but she had enough experience of Hogwarts and of schools such as this in general to know that no one, no matter who they were or what the circumstances were (save emergencies, of course), interrupted the head teacher during their start-of-term speech.

"Thank you, Headmaster, for those kind words of welcome" she began. Hannah despised her more and more by the minute and, by the looks of the faces from Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and her fellow Ravenclaws, she wasn't the only one.

"Well, it is lovely to be back at Hogwarts, I must say!" she continued, smiling to reveal a distinctively feline array of pointed teeth. "And to see such happy little faces looking up at me"

Hannah was finding it difficult to keep a straight face, one thing she hated more than anything was being patronised but this was ridiculous. The woman was absurd!

"I'm sure we'll be very good friends" Hannah bit her lip. Another simpering cough escaped from Umbridge's mouth. She went on to talk about old habits and new and traditions that should be kept, others that should be discouraged. "Progress for progress's sake must be discouraged" "pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited."

The Ministry's value on education and the minister for magic himself constantly cropped up in the speech. Finally, Umbridge sat down and the hall sprang back into life. Dumbledore continued. The staff, however –particularly McGonagall, were clearly less than pleased about the interruption made by the simpering pink toad.

"So... who teaches what, apart from the new teachers, of course" Hannah asked Cho when she had the chance.

"Well, The dwarfish one, that's Flitwick.... he teaches Charms and he's our head of house; Snape, the sort of greasy one, he's Slytherin's head and teaches Potions; Sprout, the eccentric one with the flyaway hair, teaches Herbology and is head of Hufflepuff... McGonagall's Transfiguration, head of Gryffindor and deputy head of the school..." Cho carried on explaining to Hannah the dynamics of the staff at Hogwarts. She was listening, vaguely, but that was more of a distraction question. The things Umbridge had said were puzzling her... Why was she going on about the ministry's views on Hogwarts education and talking about pruning habits that ought to be prohibited. That and her presence in general were playing on Hannah's mind.

The sound of scraping chairs broke her concentration.

"Come on... I'll show you to our common room" Cho said. Hannah looked over to Hufflepuff table briefly, hoping to catch Ced quickly... she wanted to be sure whether it was just her overreacting or if someone else felt uneasy about Umbridge... Ced was her closest friend at Hogwarts... she simply _had_ to ask him. She had forgotten to add into the equation that he was a prefect so she had no hope of talking to him now while he was showing the first years round. She sighed briefly and then smiled at Cho... what would Ravenclaw common room be like?

Hannah followed Cho towards what she learnt was the west side of the school, climbing up various staircases and walking along passages until they reached the fifth floor. Cho then turned and began to climb a narrow spiral staircase up to a door with no handle or Keyhole. The only thing adorning the door was a knocker in the shape of an eagle... Hannah guessed from the fact that this animal was conspicuously present on Ravenclaw uniforms that it was Ravenclaw's symbol. She wondered why the two of them waited... didn't they have to give a password or something to get in... That was what she had been told by her dad who had been a Gryffindor.

The eagle spoke: "Lives without a body, hears without ears, speaks without a mouth, to which the air alone gives birth."

Hannah thought for a moment. This was some kind of riddle... clearly a correct answer was the only way into the tower. She thought through the different parts of what the eagle had said.

"An echo" she realised aloud, just when Cho was about to open her mouth.

"Well answered" the eagle replied and the door swung open.

"Spoken like a true Ravenclaw" I heard Roger Davies say behind me as we all walked into the tower. It was a large, circular room with book shelves on the walls. A large fire roared in the stone fireplace and Blue armchairs and sofas surrounded it along with a few tables. The huge arched windows overlooked the mountains surrounding the castle and by a door to a staircase opposite the entrance that led to the dormitories was a large statue of a grand woman: Rowena Ravenclaw. The room itself was light and airy. The carpets were a gorgeous deep blue and there were blue and bronze hangings on the walls and around the windows. However, Hannah found the ceiling the most breathtaking. It was a domed ceiling in a midnight blue, covered with small, painted stars.

"What do you think?" Cho asked.

"I think do quite happily here" Hannah answered, smiling. Hannah went straight to the dormitories after having socialised briefly with a few of her new housemates... most of whom were introduced by an eager Roger Davies. It was easy enough to find her room, which she shared with four other girls in their 7th year. Again, the dorms were Blue and Bronze with the four-poster beds Hannah had been told about by her dad. Hannah noticed her case was by one of the beds, along with a new Ravenclaw uniform and a timetable.

_Well... this is home_ she thought.


	3. Chapter 3

**Round three!!! Okay.... this may seem random... when I started this I had one idea of where it was going, then I ran out of inspiration and I left it for a while, when I came back to it I started on a different route so this may seem really strange. To be honest a lot of my stuff is like that 'cause I tend to go where they take me and not plan them :P**

**Oh! No French this time I think!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything that JKR created, just my own characters**

**Enjoy!**

Hannah was slightly startled by the pink accents that adorned Umbridge's classroom. She was beginning to dislike her Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher more and more by the second – Pink was one of her least favourite colours.

Ced got up when she came in and motioned the seat next to him.

"Thanks" she told him when she took her seat next to him.

"No problem" he replied. He was about to say more when the Ministry's pink-clad envoy appeared.

"Good Morning Children" she began in her insipid, patronising way. "Please turn to page 394. I have given you all a sheet of the aims of this year's course. If you have any questions, raise your hand"

Hannah had already looked through the 'course aims' and had noticed the largely theory-based nature of their course when she bought her books.

"Yes, dear" Umbridge answered. Hannah cringed at her patronising.

"There's nothing here about _using_ defensive magic" she stated firmly.

"Well... I don't see why you should expect to use magic in my classroom"

Hannah was shocked... what did this teacher think she was doing?

"With all due respect, professor, Defensive magic is a very practical subject. How are we supposed to know how to use the spells if all we do is read books?"

Fred and George Weasley smirked as Umbridge grew more irritable.

"You will be learning about defensive spells in a safe, secure environment" she told Hannah, trying to retain the fixed smile upon her face.

"But how will we know if we can use them if we aren't allowed to use magic? Defensive magic is a practical subject... you can't learn how to use the spells by reading books! How are you supposed to use the spells in the real world if all you did whilst you were supposed to have been educated was write out notes from patronisingly simple text-books?" Hannah argued again, finding the entire class absurd. There was a distinct silence around her... the new girl challenging a new teacher on the first lesson... apart from the chinking of coins as the Weasleys exchanged bets, trying not to laugh.

"My dear, you won't need to use defensive spells... there is nothing out there to harm you. The course you will be studying is a safe and ministry-approved course that will gain you a NEWT qualification in my subject" Umbridge replied, her lips thin with frustration whilst trying to hold to her insipid mannerisms. She turned to the rest of the class and began to dictate what they would be doing in the lesson.

"Hannah... What are you doing?" Ced asked incredulously.

"What?"

"It's your first day and hers and you're arguing with her already?"

"She doesn't know what she's talking about-" Hannah argued, their entire conversation an earnest, but low murmur.

"I know but... you could at least leave it for a little before showing your claws couldn't you?" he advised.

"No talking" Umbridge demanded. Hannah sighed in frustration and dipped her quill in her ink pot to start writing. She found a small scrap of paper and decided to continue their conversation.

_There's something odd about her... can't you see it?_

_**She's new... of course she seems odd. **_

_But.. straight away... from the way she interrupted your headmaster to her speech about discouraging progress and the ministry's values. Fudge is scared stiff about the speculation surrounding __Vous-Savez-Qui__ You-Know-Who's return and even I've read how he's ousted Dumbledore from all his posts because of how afraid of him he is. She's Fudge's insider... his spy!_

_**You're just jumping to conclusions**_

_You're too much of a gentleman to see facts... I'm sure I'm not the only one that has noticed. _

"Something to share, Miss...?" Umbridge asked.

"Brunel" Hannah replied with a slight French accent "and no, Professor"

The note was scrunched up in her hand, waiting to be stuffed away somewhere.

"Are you quite sure?"

"Yes"

Umbridge regarded the two of them sceptically and turned away briefly, but giving Hannah enough time to stuff the note in her bag. The bell for lessons went and Hannah couldn't get out of the classroom quick enough. Charms next... a healthy antidote to Umbridge's lesson

"Here she comes" Hannah heard Ed mutter as she approached the group she had met on her train journey sitting by a tree during break.

"Talking about me?" she asked as she sat down. Hannah scanned the slightly disbelieving looks on their faces. "I take it you were all milling over my performance in that Umbridge's lesson"

"Well..."

"Don't lie... it was obvious!" she told Ed with a smile. "What?"

"You argued with that woman already?" Kate asked.

"Yeah... so?"

"If she is Fudge's spy..." Amy began

"_She is_" Hayley, Ed and Hannah said at exactly the same time. Hannah looked at Ced to prove the point she had made earlier.

"Okay... so Hannah and Hermione Granger say... but if she is... don't you think the best thing to do is to stay out of her radar?"

"Who's Hermione Granger?" Hannah asked.

"A Gryffindor girl in fifth year who pretty much makes your house pointless... no offence" James answered. Hannah was still unclear.

"She was Krum's date for the ball last year" Ced added. Now Hannah remembered – all eyes had been on her on that day last year. Hannah certainly remembered her... people made such a fuss over the fact that Hermione had gone with the famous seeker... and also of the gorgeous Periwinkle blue dress that she had worn.

"In answer to your question... not if she's planning on giving us a second-rate education and interfering around here" Hannah replied with conviction. There was an awkward silence where the cautious Hufflepuffs looked shifty and the Gryffindors smiled briefly at Hannah. This was going to make for an interesting dynamic within the group.

"Can we change the subject, please?" Hannah asked after a while.

"Erm... Quidditch?" Ed suggested rather typically, Hannah guessed, as the other three girls rolled their eyes.

"Who's going for tryouts this year?" Zac asked. The boys immediately spoke.

"I'll get seeker this year" Ced stated confidently.

"Ced... you're captain of your Quidditch team! Your position was already guaranteed" Hannah teased.

"Well... I'm going to try for chaser" Zac stated firmly.

"Me too" Ed added.

"I'm better as a keeper" James revealed.

"Well... Good luck to all of you" Hannah told them with a smile.

"What about you girlies?? Fancy giving Quidditch a go this year??" Ed asked.

"Erm... no" Hayley stated categorically.

"Same here" Kate agreed

"No way" Amy added. The boys were steadily getting more and more disappointed.

"What about New-girl Hannah?" Ed asked hopefully. Ced had smirk on his face, remembering the last conversation he and Hannah had had about Quidditch.

"Yeah... I might" Hannah replied. All of them, apart from Ced, looked dumbfounded.

"What?!" Kate exclaimed.

"Ye-hess!" James cried, high-fiving Ed, Zac and Ced.

"Why?" Amy demanded.

"Well... I used to play back at my old school and Roger Davies won't stop going on at me about it. If I don't I probably won't get any peace"

The boys laughed.

"We won't have any peace now" Hayley laughed. "They're obsessed with Quidditch"

"What position did you play?" Zac asked, ignoring Hayley. Ced chuckled slightly.

"Not seeker" he told the group. Hannah pulled a face at him.

"I played Chaser, actually." She replied, pointedly looking at Ced.

"Oh yeah!" Ed cried out, high-fiving Hannah along with Zac. The three other girls rolled their eyes yet again.

"D'you reckon Cho'll try out this year?" James asked absently.

"Cho plays Quidditch?" Hannah asked.

"Yeah, she was Ravenclaw's seeker... has been for the past couple of years or so" Zac replied.

"That's what made her and Ced such an _ideal_ couple" Kate teased.

"Can you just shut up about that?" Ced snapped. Hannah looked at Kate who just widened her eyes sarcastically and smiled at the two other girls. The group became silent, the rest of them looking awkwardly around and to the floor.

"O-kay... I'm going to check out the library" Hannah announced, breaking the awkward silence.

There were responding mutters of 'okay' 'cool' and 'see you later.

"I'll come with you... wouldn't want you to get lost" Ced replied, although probably more to get away from the rest of the group...

"What was that?" Hannah demanded when the two of them were out of sight in a cloistered corridor.

"What?"

"You just snapped at her... granted she was teasing you but you didn't have to react like that. Hell... you've known her longer than me but you weren't like that when I wound you up" she argued with him.

"I don't see why you're making a big deal out of it"

"Because I didn't think you were the kind of prat that had moodswings every five seconds and that would snap like that. I mean, you broke up with Cho last year, right? Did Kate just touch on something that was still a sore nerve or what?" Hannah asked.

"No!" he answered defensively. Hannah saw this wasn't getting anywhere. He was as stubborn as she was so she wouldn't win. She carried on walking, slowly, allowing Ced to walk next to her in silence.

"Well, I think you should apologise" Hannah suggested tentatively, expecting complete, immediate opposition. Ced sighed, as if conceding to her.

"Yeah, you're right... I'll do it when I get back from the library" he answered, running a hand casually through his hair. Hannah laughed slightly.

"You didn't really want to go to the library did you?"

"Er... not really, no." He admitted with a slightly crooked smile.

"Because... I do know where it is... i'm not going to get lost." She told him. "Besides, I've been promised a tour of the school by Roger Davies later"

Ced laughed.

"Fun evening"

"Yeah" Hannah replied sarcastically. Roger's eagerness to look after her was getting on her nerves, although he was a perfectly alright guy... she just didn't want him to get ideas... especially so early in the year.

"Ok I get your point... see you later" Ced told her, smiling as he turned to leave.

"See you" Hannah replied, turning round and taking a much more preferable route to the Ravenclaw tower. After the tales she had heard about the school's librarian, a trip to the library could wait...


End file.
